Sunday Independent (Ireland)

Are you obsessed with being liked?

-

1HOW MANY ‘LIKES’ do you aim to get when you post on Instagram? A) Hundreds is OK. Thousands is better. But ideally, so many that I end up turning off my notificati­ons. B) At least double digits, mainly from people I know in the ‘real world’. Who cares what strangers think? C) Instagram... What’s that one again?

2HOW OFTEN do you throw dinner parties? A) Every weekend. Bring a bottle. A friend. And your neighbour, if you like. The more, the merrier. B) On special occasions I go all-out. But usually I just invite my closest friends. C) Never. Give me an evening on the sofa with a glass of red and a book any day.

3HOW WILL YOU CELEBRATE your birthday? A) With cocktails, canapes and at least 40 of my closest friends. The invitation­s are in the post. B) A low-key dinner with my other half. Or a boozy brunch with the girls, if they insist. C) The same as last year — lying low and hoping no one will mention it.

4WHAT DO YOU DO when you’re invited out for drinks with colleagues? A) Invited? I’m the one asking them. Then propping up the bar three hours later. B) I’ll go, but just for one... two, at a push... OK, three. But that’s my limit. C) I’ll tell them I already have plans... then slip off home for some peace.

5WHAT’S YOUR ATTITUDE to Twitter? A) If you think it, tweet it. (And if someone else thinks it, tweet something back.) B) Useful at crucial moments in life. Like when you need to vent about the Broadchurc­h ending/Trump’s hair/no guavas in the supermarke­t. C) Another way to waste time, clog up my inbox and generally disconnect with the real world. Sigh.

MAINLY A

You care so much, you may just donate an organ in exchange for 100,000 extra followers. You also have a wide circle of friends (OK, acquaintan­ces), your dinner parties are famous in your circle and you are in at least a dozen WhatsApp groups.

MAINLY B

You’re mixed: You want to be liked, but you also think there’s more to life. You enjoy a night in front of the TV or with a book... but when you’re out with your friends, you’ll still be the life and soul of the party. And will probably post a quick selfie to show that.

MAINLY C

Social media? No, thanks. A night out? Only if I have to. You think social media is what’s wrong with modern society. Being at home is far better than being, well, being anywhere else. But that’s OK, because your own company is just great.

 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Ireland